The Collierville Board of Mayor and Aldermen has approved the preliminary site plan for a McDonald’s Restaurant between the Taco Bell and Walgreens on W. Poplar Ave.

The 5,000-plus square foot restaurant will be located on 1.17 acres in the Byhalia Retail Center.

The existing McDonald’s east of the new location on Poplar will be vacated.

The Planning Commission voted 6-2 for the site plan earlier this month, with Greg Cotton and Scott Rozanski dissenting.

The Commission initially refused the site plan at an Aug. 4 meeting, citing potential traffic problems with the drive-thru lane.

Since then, the applicants have created a new site plan that includes a widened front driveway to allow a pass-by lane around vehicles stacking for the drive-thru.

The site will be accessible from Byhalia Center Drive to the west and an easement with Walgreens to the east. There will be no direct curb cuts to Poplar Ave.

Along with the project, Poplar will be resurfaced and striped to seven lanes between Byhalia Road and Market Blvd. The road improvements are estimated at $32,000. Since McDonald’s will generate much of the future traffic on that section of Poplar, Alderman John Worley said the restaurant chain should be responsible for paying for the improvements.

The Board of Mayor and Aldermen will determine McDonald’s financial responsibility for restriping at a future meeting.